Bag



R. V. FLEMING Jan. 11, 1966 BAG- 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 I Filed April 27, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 R. v. FLEMING BAG Jan. 11, 1966 Filed April 27, 1964 FIG.|2.

United States Patent Bro. Bag Company, Minneapolis, Minn., a corporation of Missouri Filed Apr. 27, 1964, Ser. No. 362,676 19 Claims. (Cl. 229-66) This invention relates to bags, and more particularly to sifter bags for containing comminuted or pulverized materials, such as fertilizer, plant food or insecticides, which are ultimately to be shaken out of the bag.

Among the several objects of the invention may be noted the provision of sifter bags such as described, made of paper or the like, and having sifter holes adjacent the bottom for ultimate sifting out of the contents of the bag, and in which the upper portion of the bag containing the material to be sifted out is initially closed off from the bottom portion of the bag by an intermediate closure so as to prevent sifting out of the material until the time of use, at which time the intermediate closure may be readily removed; the provision of a bag such as described in which the intermediate closure is constituted by a sewn seam which is readily unravelable for removal thereof; the provision of a bag such as described in which a cover may be provided for the sifter holes, which cover is readily removable as an incident of removing the intermediate closure; and the provision of a bag such as described whereby, after removal of the intermediate closure (and the cover, if a cover is provided), the contents may be sifted out simply by holding the bag and shaking it, avoiding contamination of the hands by the contents. Other objects and features will be in part apparent and in part pointed out hereinafter.

The invention accordingly comprises the construction hereinafter described, the scope of the invention being indi-cated in the following claims.

In the accompanying drawings, in which several of various possible embodiments of the invention are illustrated,

FIG. 1 is a view in elevation of a bag of this invention;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary elevation of the back of the bag of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is an enlarged cross-section taken on line 3-3 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a view corresponding to FIG. 1 showing the intermediate closure partially removed from the bag;

FIG. 5 is a view showing the intermediate closure entirely removed and with the bag in condition for sifting or dispensing materials;

FIG. 6 is a view showing a modification;

FIG. 7 is a view showing the back of the bag of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is an enlarged cross-section taken on line 88 of FIG. 6;

FIG. 9 is a view showing another modification;

FIG. 10 is an enlarged cross-section taken on line 1010 of FIG. 9;

FIG. 11 is a view showing still another modification;

FIG. 12 is a view of the back of FIG. 11; and

FIG. 13 is an enlarged cross-section taken on line 13-13 of FIG. 11.

Corresponding reference characters indicate corresponding parts throughout the several views of the drawmgs.

Referring to FIGS. 15 of the drawings, a bag of this invention, designated in its entirety by the reference numeral 1, is indicated as having an upper portion 3 for receiving and holding a material to be dispensed, and a lower portion 5 adapted to dispense the material from the bag. The lower end of the bag 1 is closed by a bottom closure 7. Sifter holes or openings 9 are provided in at least one wall of the bag adjacent the bottom closure 7, and an intermediate closure 11 is provided adjacent and above the sifter holes or openings 9. Closure 11 secures the walls of the bag together to hold the material in portion 5, and is removable to permit material within portion 5 to be sifted through the holes or openings 9 in the dispensing portion 5 of the bag.

As shown, the bag 1 has front and rear Walls 13 and 15, respectively, and the bag 1 is a gusseted bag, the gussets being indicated at 17. The bag 1 can be made of paper or the like.

The bottom closure 7 includes a paper tape 19 folded around the bottom or lower end of the bag, which tape may be pasted to the bag. A narrow paper ribbon 21 may be positioned along one face of the tape 19 on the wall 15 of the bag and stitching 23 is driven through the tape 19, the paper ribbon 21 and the walls 13 and 15 of the bag to close the bottom of the bag. The tape 19, ribbon 21 and stitching 23 extend beyond the ends of the bag as illustrated in the drawings. The sifter holes 9 may be in one or both Walls 13 and 15 of the bag 1 and are located immediately above the bottom closure 7.

The intermediate closure 11 may be of the type shown and described in US. Patent No. 2,978,164 and may include two paper tapes 25 and 27 each of which may be folded in half along its length and positioned in engagement with the front and back walls 13 and 15, respectively, of the bag as best illustrated in FIG. 3. A line of stitching 29 is driven through the tapes 25 and 27 and through the walls 13 and 15 of the bag to secure the walls together. The stitching 29 of closure 11 is located above and adjacent the sifter holes or openings 9. The lengths of tapes 25 and 27 are preferably greater than the width of the bag and the tapes have end portions 31 and 33 which extend past the side edges of the bag. The row of stitching 29 extends throughout the length of the tapes.

The stitching 29 is preferably a single thread readily unravelable chain stitch type and may be formed by feeding the bag with the tapes 25 and 27 positioned on the walls of the bag through a sewing machine having a needle which drives loops of the thread through the bag and the tapes thereby forming needle holes 35 in the Walls of the bag. The loops of the thread forming the stitching are laid over on one side of the bag and extend through the preceding loop as shown in Patent No. 2,978,164. This stitching is unraveled with ease by taking hold of the trailing end of the thread, which is at the trailing end of the stitching in relation to the passage of the bag through the sewing machine, and pulling it away from the bag.

For convenience in removing the tapes 25 and 27 and the row of stitching 29, a pull tab 37 may be adhered to the trailing end of the row of stitching 29 and to the end of the tape 25. The pull tab 37 consists of a strip of paper and preferably extends beyond the ends of the tapes as shown in FIG. 2. The adhesive between the pull tab 37 and the tape 25 anchors the thread forming the row of stitching 29 against unraveling until it is desired to open the dispensing portion 5 of the bag. With this closure construction, closure 11 is readily removed simply by grasping the pull tab 37 and pulling it away from the bag as shown in FIG. 4. The bag 1 with the intermediate closure 11 fully removed is illustrated in FIG. 5.

The upper end of the bag 1 may be closed by any suitable type of closure (not shown) after the bag has been filled.

In using the bag, the material to be dispensed, such as a comminuted or pulverized material, such as fertilizer, plant food, insecticide or the like, is held in upper portion 3 of the bag as long as the intermediate closure 11 is in place holding the walls 13 and 15 of the bag together as illustrated in FIG. 3. When it is desired to dispense the material contained in the upper portion 3 of the bag, the intermediate closure 11 is removed by grasping the pull tab 37 and pulling outwardly away from the bag. This results in complete removal of the tab, the folded tapes 25 and 27 and the thread forming the row of stitching 29. By using the single thread unravelable stitch type which is readily unravelable by pulling one end thereof, the intermediate closure 11 is readily removed and the material in the upper portion 3 in the bag can then pass into the dispensing portion 5 of the bag. The material may then be sifted out through the holes or openings 9 by holding the bag and shaking it. The holes or openings 9 can be of any suitable size, depending upon the material to be dispensed, the desired dispensing rate, etc. When the bag contains a material which might be harmful to the skin, dispensing of the contents in the manner described avoids contact between the hands and the material and thus avoids contamination of the hands.

FIGS. 6-8 illustrate a modification in which the holes 9 are cove-red by a paper tape or cover 39 folded around the bottom of the bag, this tape 39 being of such width as to cover the holes. The tape 39 is attached to bag 1 by an intermediate closure 41. The intermediate closure .41. includes a folded filler tape 43 and' is held in place .by a line of single thread stitching 45 of the readily unravelable type described hereinbefore. The stitching 45 extends through the tape 43, through the walls 13.and of the bag and through the margins of the folded tape 39 thereby to secure the tape 39 to the walls of the bag and to secure the walls 13 and 15 together so that the contents of the bag will not pass through thesifter holes 9 until the intermediate closure 41 is removed. The intermediate closure 41 is of the same or similar construction as the intermediate closure 11 previously described except that the tape 27is eliminated and the tape 39 passes beneaththe tape 43 and is caught-by the stitching 45.

A pull tab 47 is adhered over the appropriate end of the tape 43 and the end of the thread of the stitching 45, and the intermediate closure can be removed by pulling the tab '47 away from the bag wall13. When the stitching 45 is removed, the tape or cover 39 is also removed as an incident of the removal of the closure 41. The tape 39 protects the holes or openings 9.

Another form of bag of this invention'is indicated at 49 inFIGS. 9 and 10, including walls 51 and 53 which are closed at the bottom by a pinch closure in which the walls 51 and 53 are folded upwardly and secured by an adhesive 55 to the wall 51 of the bag. The lower or dispensing portion of the bag 49 can include a plurality of sifter holes or openings 57 which may extend through one or both walls of the bag 49 in the pinch closure and the .holes 57 are normally out of communication with the upper or material containing portion of the bag by an intermediate closure shown generally at 59.

The intermediate closure 59 is shown as including a folded paper filler strip 61 extending along the pinch closure and secured in place by a line of stitching 63, the stitching being of the single thread unravelable stitch type as described hereinbefore and in the before-mentioned patent. A second paper filler strip (not shown) similar to the one shown at 61 may be provided and positioned on the other wall of the bag if desired. A pull tab 65 .is adhered over the appropriate end portion of the filler strip 61 and the stitching 63 to that the closure 59 can be removed for dispensing of material in the bag by pulling on the pull tab 65 to remove the stitching 63 and the filler strip 61. The contents of the bag can then be dispensed through the holes or openings 57 by shaking the bag to sift the contents through the holes or openings.

Another formof bag of this invention is illustrated in FIGS. 11-13, this being a pinch bottom bag similar to the bag of FIGS. 9 and 10. The bag of FIGS. 11-13 has a length of tape of paper or the like .67 foldedaround the pinch bottom and enclosing the holes or openings 57. Tape 67 extends upwardly along the walls 51, 53 of the bag above the holes or openings 57. The tape 67 can be held in place by the intermediate closure 59 as described in connection with FIGS. 9 and 10. The line of stitching 63 of closure 59 is driven through the side edges of the tape 67 to hold the tape 67 in place on the pinch bottom of the bag. When intermediate closure 59 is removed from the bag by pulling the pull tab 65, the stitching 63 is removed along with the filler strip 61, and the tape 67 is removed as an incident to removal of the intermediate closure.

In each of the various forms of this invention the contents of the bag are retained in an upper portion of the bag until it is desired to dispense same, and the intermediate closurecan then be quickly pulled from the bag by use of the pull tab. The material or bag contents in the upper portion of the bag can then pass into the dispensing portion of the bag and the bag contents may be sifted out through the sifter holes or openings. The quickly removable intermediate closure in the various forms of this invention facilitates use of the sifter bag.

In view of the above, it will be seen that the several objects of the invention are achieved and other advantageous resultsattained.

As various changes could be made in the above constructions Without departing from the scope of the invention, it is intended that all matter contained in the above description or shown in the accompanying drawings shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

What is claimed is:

1. A sifter bag made of paper or the like, said bag being closed at the bottom and havingsifter holes in at least one wall of the bag above and adjacent the bottom, said bag having a line of stitching extending across the bag from one side thereof to the other above and adjacent said sifter holes securing together the walls of the bag and constituting an intermediate closure for preventing the contents of the bag from sifting out through said holes, said stitching being removable to open up the bag for shaking out the contents through said holes.

2. A sifter bag as set forth in claim 1 wherein the bottom of the bag is closed by a tape folded around the bottom of the bag and a line of stitching driven through the tape.

3. A sifter bag as set forth in claim 1 wherein the bottom of the bag is closed by a tape folded around the bottom of the bag, said tape covering said sifterholes, and said line of stitchingbeing driven through said tape above said sifter holes.

4. A sifter bag as set forth in claim 1 wherein the bottom of the bag is closed by a pinch closure, said holes being in said pinch closure.

5. A sifter bag as set forth in claim 4 having a tape folded around the pinch closure and covering said holes, said line of stitching being driven through the tape.

6. A sifter bag as set forth in claim 1 having holes in both walls of said bagbetween said bottom and said intermediate closure.

7. A sifter bag made of paper or the like and being closed at the bottom, said bag having sifter holes through at least one wall of the bag above the-closed bottom, said bag having a line of stitching extending across the bag from one side thereof to the other side thereof above and adjacent said sifter holes securing together said walls of the bag and constituting an intermediate closure for preventing the contents of the bag from sifting out through said holes, said stitching being of the single thread unravelable stitch type which is readily unravelable by pulling one end thereof for removal of the stitching to open up the bag for shaking out the contents through the holes.

8. A sifter bag as set forth in claim 7 having holes in both walls of said bag between said bottom and said intermediate closure.

9. A sifter bag as set forth in claim 7 wherein said intermediate closure includes a length of tape positioned against a wall of the bag with said line of stitching being driven through said length of tape.

10. A sifter bag as set forth in claim 7 wherein the bottom of the bag is closed by a tape folded around the bottom of the bag and a line of stitching driven through the tape.

11. A sifter bag as set forth in claim 7 wherein the bottom of the bag is closed by a tape folded around the bottom of the bag, said tape covering said sifter holes, and said line of stitching being driven through said tape above said sifter holes.

12. A sifter bag as set forth in claim 7 wherein the bottom of the bag is closed by a pinch closure, said holes being in said pinch closure.

13. A sifter bag as set forth in claim 12 having a tape folded around the pinch closure and covering said holes, said line of stitching being driven through the tape.

14. A sifter bag made of paper or the like and being closed at the bottom, said bag having sifter holes through at least one wall of the bag above the closed bottom, an intermediate closure extending across the bag from one side thereof to the other side thereof above and adjacent said sifter-holes securing together the walls of the bag and preventing the contents of the bag from sifting out through the holes, said closure including a strip of paper tape and a line of stitching driven through said tape and through said walls of the bag, said tape and stitching extending past the side edges of the bag, said line of stitching being of the single thread readily unravelable chain stitch type and being unravelable by pulling it from one end of said line of stitching, and a pull tab secured to the end portion of said tape over said one end portion of said stitching so that said tape and thread are removable by pulling said tab to thereby open up the bag for shaking out the contents of the bag through the holes.

15. A sifter bag as set forth in claim 14 wherein said holes are in both Walls of said bag between said bottom and said intermediate closure.

16. A sifter bag as set forth in claim 14 wherein the bottom of said bag is closed by a tape folded around the bottom of the bag and a line of stitching driven through the tape.

17. A sifter bag as set forth in claim 14 wherein the bottom of the bag is enclosed by a tape folded around the bottom of the bag, said tape covering said sifter holes, and said line of stitching being driven through said tape above said sifter holes.

18. A sifter bag as set forth in claim 14 wherein the bottom of the bag is closed by a pinch closure, said sifter holes being in said pinch closure.

19. A sifter bag as set forth in claim 18 having a tape folded around the pinch closure and covering said sifter holes, said line of stitching being driven through the tape.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,947,934 2/1934 Geimer 229-66 2,878,967 3/1959 Duke 229107 2.997,224 8/ 1961 Stannard 22953 JOSEPH R. LECLAIR, Primary Examiner.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No. 3,228,585 January 11, 1966 Russell V. Fleming It is hereby certified that error appears in the above numbered patent requiring correction and that the said Letters Patent should read as corrected below.

In the grant, lines 2 and 3, for assignor to Bemis Bro. Bag Company, of Minneapolis, Minnesota, a corporation of Missouri," read assignor to Bemis Company, Inc. a corporation of Missouri, line 12, for "Bemis Bro. Bag Company, its successors" read Bemis Company, Inc., its successors in the heading to the printed specification, lines 3 to S, for "assignor to Bemis Bro. Bag Company, Minneapolis, Minn. a corporation of Missouri" read assignor to Bemis Company, Inc. a corporation of Missouri column 3, line 65, for "to" read so Signed and sealed this 29th day of November 1966.

(SEAL) Attest:

ERNEST W. SWIDER EDWARD J. BRENNER Attesting Officer Commissioner of Patents 

1. A SIFTER BAG MADE OF PAPER OR THE LIKE, SAID BAG BEING CLOSED AT THE BOTTOM AND HAVING SIFTER HOLES IN AT LEAST ONE WALL OF THE BAG ABOVE AND ADJACENT THE BOTTOM, SAID BAG HAVING A LINE OF STITCHING EXTENDING ACROSS THE BAG FROM ONE SIDE THEREOF TO THE OTHER ABOVE AND ADJACENT SAID SIFTER HOLES SECURING TOGETHER THE WALLS OF THE BAG AND CONSTITUTING AN INTERMEDIATE CLOSURE FOR PREVENTING THE CONTENTS OF THE BAG FROM SIFTING OUT THROUGH SAID HOLES, SAID STITCHING BEING REMOVABLE TO OPEN UP THE BAG FOR SHAKING OUT THE CONTENTS THROUGH SAID HOLES. 